My Cat Is Recovering From Struvite Crystals. What's Normal During Recovery?

[Ann Marie Klacko]

Hi! My 3 y/o cat Figaro is currently recovering from struvite crystals and was in the er for 4 days having his bladder flushed. He was released when his bladder was clear of crystals and he urinated a few times strain free on his own. When he came home we switched to Hills s\o rX wet food and upped his wet food intake to twice a day as opposed to his previous, once a day wet food feeding. I've seen him go in his litter box twice and he's also had a few incidents outside his box. He's on buprenex as needed, I've given it to him once a day, and a urinary spasm pill that he's taken every morning with his wet food breakfast. He seems to be drinking water and, aside from being tired, is acting sweet and "normal". I've called the vets office and they say he could still be associating the box with pain or could be inflamed form the catheter. Is there anything I can do to entice him back to his box? We use Fresh Step litter and have five clean, regularly replaced boxes (one for each cat in the house). Help! Looking for advice from folks who've gone through it!

 

[moggielover]

He should remain on Buprenex 3x a day (or at the dosage your vet prescribed, when not as needed- in other words, if the bottle says take 3x a day, as needed, throw out the "as needed" part).

The reason you don't want to follow the "as needed" advice, and just stick to the dosage, is that while used as a sedative, Buprenex also acts as a mild muscle relaxant and urinary antispasmodic, along with the other anti-spasmodic prescribed. The trick to getting him to not associate the box with pain, is to make sure he isn't FEELING pain.

Our vet office dropped the "as needed" from our Buprenex bottles for cats with struvs and blocked/PU cats because we had owners only giving the pill once a day, and wondering why the cat was still associating the box with pain (hint: it's because kitty is still FEELING pain). We don't want to dope these cats up, but we also don't want the cat to be feeling any pain, and the short acting anti-spasmodic that we prescribe, doesn't help alone, in all cases.

Keep in mind, your kitty will be feeling some discomfort, for a few days to a week, post-catheterization. A cat's penis is VERY tiny, and s-shaped, so yeah, your poor boy is feeling it.

 

[denice]

Dr Elsey makes a Cat Attract litter that may help Cat Attract™ - Dr. Elsey's They also make an additive that you can add to regular unscented litters Cat Attract™ Litter Additive - Dr. Elsey's Change everything about the boxes, new boxes, different locations even if only a very slight change of location. I would also give the pain medication on a regular basis and as frequently as prescribed. Even with changes in the box if your cat feels pain again in the litter box you could be back to square one again.

 

[Ann Marie Klacko]

Thanks moggielover, thanks Denise! Your advice and input are appreciated.

 

[catsknowme]

For now, you can also offer a totally different style of litterbox, such as a JonnyCat disposable box filled with UNSCENTED litter. Arm&Hammer sometimes has a bit of lingering scent in their fragrance free; Fresh Step usually does. I use Cat&Co unscented. You can also try chicken feed, such as laying mash or kcrackettes/krumbles - you do have to scoop right away in the summer or the damp grain ferments.
You could also ask your vet or a holistic vet about giving him marshmallow root and slippery elm bark (tea is easiest altho it can be sprinkled onto wet food). Those herbs are very soothing to the urinary tract and have diuretic properties.